"Let us hold fast our hands..." - E. Dickenson

Our good friends at Oregon Wild are sponsoring an open vote on Oregon's favorite wild places. Here at HCPC we are delighted that both the Eagle Cap Wilderness Area and Hells Canyon are in the running! We know they are very special places, and we work every day to protect and restore these areas. It is nice to hear someone else wax eloquent about their beauty and their incredible value for wildlife.

Oregon Wild points out, "The Wilderness also provides refuge for some of the state’s most endangered wildlife. Megafauna include bighorn sheep, elk, bear, cougars, eagles, and mountain goats." They go on to talk about how the Eagle Cap Wilderness, "Oregon’s largest Wilderness area," provides a special haven for wolves and wolverines. They also acknowledge that "Some of Oregon’s oldest trees – thousands, not hundreds of years old – survive in the Wallowa Mountains that make up the heart of the Wilderness."


For Hells Canyon, Oregon Wild writes, "Hells Canyon Recreation Area has been the stage for some of Oregon’s most exciting wildlife stories. Most notably, of course, is the return of gray wolves to our state." They go on to talk about Journey, the area's famous wolf, "Starting from the Imnaha pack adjacent to Hells Canyon, Journey’s search for a mate has taken him over 1,000 miles." They agree with us that " there’s no debate over its worth as one of Oregon’s most special places. Each and every gray wolf polled agrees." THANK YOU OREGON WILD!

Another group of friends, Oregon Natural Desert Association (ONDA) just announced their 2012 Desert Conference. The conference will take place in Bend, Oregon from the evening of Thursday, September 20^th through Saturday, September 22^nd. Keynote speakers include Ursula Leguin and Kathleen Dean Moore. Workshops cover topics from Sage Grouse conservation to Beaver recovery, from NEPA to Energy Development.

HCPC is active in a number of forest collaborative groups that bring together diverse points of view from the Forest Service, the timber industry, local county government and conservation voices such as ours. While we value the opportunity to share and communicate with other stakeholders in the area, we sometimes need reminding to also value our opportunities to share and communicate with those who understand not only what we are doing, but why we are doing it - groups like ONDA and Oregon Wild, BARK and Friends of the Clearwater, the oh-so-wonderful Friends of the Badlands (FOBBITS) and so many more!

Thank you all for the work you do, the love you have for wild places, and the wonderful conversations we have had and look forward to having in the future!